


Written in the Stars

by Ouat



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Identity Issues, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:26:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22358704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ouat/pseuds/Ouat
Summary: What if it wasn't Nat who went undercover at SI.
Relationships: Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton/Tony Stark
Comments: 51
Kudos: 225





	1. Chapter 1

Coulson calls him at 5:45 in the morning on his day off. He’d be annoyed but Coulson would never call him in on his day off unless it was necessary.

“Be at headquarters at 0630” Coulson says, his tone strained, before hanging up abruptly. Clint lies back on his bed for a minute contemplating what could make Coulson sound like that before getting up to pack. His conclusion, nothing good.

…...

He walks into headquarters where Coulson is waiting for him. “No one’s dead right?” Clint asks nervously.

“No, no one’s dead. Natasha’s currently indisposed but she’ll be fine, she had a mission though. Which she was supposed to start today.” Clint let himself relax slightly at that. Natasha was his best friend and he wasn’t ashamed to admit that he worried about her. Although Nat would probably punch him if he ever told her that; even though he knew that she worried about him as well.

“So, I’m the replacement” Clint says. “Wait. Which mission is this? Please tell me it’s not the honeypot one.”

“Yes. I’ve already set everything up, but you need supposed to be at Stark Tower in an hour.”

“But Coulson I’m not even his type” Clint whines. Clint’s aware that his dislike of this sort of mission was weird for a spy and he was fine with most undercover operations. But just lying about liking someone romantically had always seemed intrinsically wrong to him. Not that he was a zealot or anything about the sanctity of soulmate bonds, if anything, he was actually the opposite. His parents had been soulmates and well that just proved to him that just because people were soulmates it didn’t necessarily mean they were good for one another. Coulson had always supported him in this and had never made him do one after he had admitted how uncomfortable he found them. He had even reprimanded other handlers who had tried to pressure Clint into doing them. Which meant of course that this mission was important enough that Coulson felt that this was necessary.

“Actually, you are his type. He’s just more discreet about those liaisons.” That was interesting, he thought. He wondered why someone like Tony Stark would feel the need to hide that sort of thing. It’s not like they were in the 1940s anymore pretending same sex soulmates were platonic. Coulson sighs “Barton you don’t have to do it of course but you are the only backup available right now.”

“Fine. But you owe me coffee. The really good stuff from that fancy French place.” He’d do it without the coffee of course but he wasn’t beyond guilt tripping Coulson a little.

“Barton I will get you your coffee, but may I remind you that we are in a bit of a rush right now” Clint sits at that. “Thank you for your cooperation” Coulson says with no small amount of exasperation.

“No worries. I’m a professional” Clint smirks.

“Of course, you are” he responds. But Coulson smiles slightly as he says it, so Clint knows he’s amused.

“So, what’s the play? Am I the hot yoga instructor or the personal assistant?” he asks, curious.

“You’re the notary.”


	2. Chapter 2

As Clint walked into Stark tower the receptionist at the front asked him, “What's your name sir.” Clint gave an internal sigh at the words. They were very close to his own soul mark. Not quite though. The problem with having such a common mark was that he couldn’t help but feel slightly hopeful each time the question was asked.

“Clark Barnes” he responded with a disarming smile. “I’m here as a notary for Ms. Potts.”

“Of course, Mr. Barnes. I’ll let her know you’re here.”

“That’d be great. Thank you.” Clint took a moment to take a more in depth look around. The tower was mostly empty at this time in the morning, but Clint was sure it would fill up in no time. There were several security guards in the main lobby and no doubt there were more scattered throughout the building. They didn’t look to be armed with guns though rather they had top of the line tasers. At least two of them gave off a distinct military vibe. He was interrupted from his thoughts by the distinct sound of heels coming down the hallway towards him. He turned towards the noise just in time to see Ms. Potts appear.

“Hi, you must be Mr. Barnes. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She reached out to shake his hand.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well” Clint said making himself sound just a bit starstruck, which wasn’t really that far from the truth. He’d read the file on her and she was impressive. She’d managed to run SI while she was just Starks PA all the while reigning in Starks increasingly reckless shenanigans. Nat’s going to be mad she missed meeting her he thought. But it was probably for the best. The two of them could probably take over the world together if they tried, he thought wryly.

“Well let’s go see if we can pull Tony away from whatever he’s up to. Follow me”

“Sounds good.” Clint responded following her down the hall to the elevators.

When they got in, she said “JARVIS can you take us to whichever floor Tony is on currently.”

The elevator started moving at that, and a disembodied voice said “Of course, Ms. Potts. He is currently on the 65th floor.” At that Clint gave a little jump. He had been expecting it, but a normal notary would be surprised by Starks AI he figured.

Pepper looked amused at his surprise. “Don’t worry that’s just JARVIS. He’s an AI Tony created to run the tower.” That’s an understatement if he’d ever heard one he thought. He didn’t know that much about the AI Stark had created but he knew JARVIS did much more than merely running the tower. Though he could see how it would make people more comfortable to think that that was all JARVIS did.

“It’s alright I was just caught a bit off guard.”

“Makes sense. Most elevators don’t talk back to you.”

“No, they don’t. I’ve never thought about it before but how rude of them” he replied. Looking up, Clint addressed JARVIS, “you should teach your brethren some manners.”

“Mr. Barnes I am about as closely related to elevators as you are single celled organisms.” Clint laughed at his faux offended tone.

“I see you have a sense of humor” he responded.

“Mr. Stark did attempt to imbue me with a sense of wit. Consequently, any failure I’m afraid is on him.”

At that the elevator came to a stop. As they stepped out, Clint asked Pepper “Is he only in the elevators or is he elsewhere as well?” Clint was aware that he shouldn’t pry too much so as to avoid suspicion but he was genuinely curious as to the answer. JARVIS seemed quite real. He also wondered how much room his servers took up and how much free will he had but those were definitely not questions to ask. Pepper looked mildly uncomfortable at the question. Not noticeable unless you were trained to detect such things, which of course meant JARVIS’s purview extended much further than she was comfortable with him knowing.

“He’s mostly confined to the elevators” she finally replied. Doubtful Clint thought, he was probably watching us right now which kind of made him want to wave at the nearest camera. He didn’t of course because no matter what Coulson thought he was a professional, at least when he was on a job. Pepper looked at her phone briefly then she said, “I’m going to go in and warn him you’re coming so hopefully he’ll be at least semi-behaved.” Her tone implied that she highly doubted that. Which honestly worked for him. The less controlled he was the more easily he would be manipulated. She walked towards the room where Stark was. In the distance he could hear her say “The notary’s here. Could you please come sign the transfer paperwork?”

Clint heard someone respond to that but couldn’t quite make out what was said. So he waited for a bit before trailing in after her.

As he walked in the first thing he noticed was the boxing ring. In it were Stark and his driver Harold ‘Happy’ Hogan. As he walked over to where Pepper was standing away from the ring Starks eyes followed him. Well it looked like Coulson had been right about Clint being his type he thought. Although how he kept it a secret he had no idea if Stark was always this obvious. At the same time Pepper was saying to him “I promise you this is the only time I will ask you to sign over your company.” At that he almost stopped in my tracks. Stark was making her the CEO. Not that it didn’t make sense. She basically ran the company anyway but in my experience men like Stark didn’t hand over power unless they had to. Which raised the question of why or at the very least why now?

Now next to Pepper, Clint opened his portfolio to show her the paperwork and told her “I need you to initial each box.” As she was initialing Stark and Hogan were still in the ring until after a kick from Stark, Hogan declared himself done.

Stark then turned and pointed at him asking “What’s your name?” Clint had a second to think of course he’d say my words before they flared. Then his thought was just aw, words. no. The room of course fell silent.

Eventually he realized that he was supposed to say something back. Finally he responded, “Barnes, Clark Barnes. But I’d guess you already knew that.” So sue him. He was feeling a bit clever. This of course was followed by another soul flare.


	3. Chapter 3

Tony stared at his soulmate. God he couldn’t believe it, his soulmate. I mean sure he knew he had one. He even knew the man’s name. And hadn’t that been a peach growing up with dear old dad and his opinions on the legitimacy of homosexuality. But for an old-fashioned name there had still been too many Clark Barnes to really narrow it down, but here he was.

He had known that Pepper was arranging a notary to make her transfer to CEO official. Hell, he’d even known that his name was Clark Barnes. JARVIS had given him a heads up. Bless his software. He had just never thought that this would be the Clark Barnes. Even when he had walked in and Tony had thought that he was probably the most beautiful man he had ever seen. I mean look at those arms. And of course, he had just stared at him like a goddamn idiot. Was still staring at him like a goddamn idiot.

He figured that he had been the only one not completely taken by surprise when Clarks soul flare had gone off. Everyone else, even Clark, who must have known those were his words looked shocked. But then again, his words were a question he must have heard a hundred times over. So Tony was the only one who had noticed his soulmate's second reaction after the shock. His soulmate had been horrified. It had only been there for a split second but that was enough. Not that Tony could blame him he’d be horrified if he was in his place.

Tony had been told ever since he was a child that soul mates meant nothing. His father had not had a mark and his mother’s soul mate had died when she was young. Tony though had never been able to completely squash the hope that his soul mate would love him regardless.

It was for the best anyway, he thought bitterly. The palladium poisoning was going to kill him sooner rather than later it looked like.

Suddenly Peppers voice disrupted his ruminations. “I think Happy and I should leave the two of you for a moment.”

“Yep we’ll leave you to it boss” Happy responded completely ignoring the pleading eyes he was surreptitiously shooting at him. Traitors he thought as Pepper and him left, leaving him alone with his soul mate, who still looked like they were freaking out.

“We can pretend it didn’t happen. As long as we don’t touch, the bond won’t seal.” The words were out of his mouth before he even realized it. He wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch him. To cement their bond. But that wouldn’t be fair to Clark. Soul mates could feel the emotions and the pain of their bonded mate. They also took deaths badly. Suicide was rampant among grieving bond mates. He could spare Clark that. So he would. It was better that he hates him. For Clark to see him as petty and cruel. It meant that at least he wouldn’t grieve.

“Is that what you want?” Clark asks frowning. God how he wanted to scream no. He wanted to beg Clark to give him a chance.

But instead he answered “Yes.”

“Ok. We should call Pepper back in then so we can finish the paperwork.” He sounded calm but Tony had seen the flicker of hurt that had crossed his face when Tony had denied bonding. Soul mates finding each other but not bonding was rare but it happened.

“Sounds good. I’ll let her know to come back in” He said walking out. He needed to get out of there. He didn’t think he could stand seeing the now obvious disappointment on Clarks face. He knew it was for the best but that didn’t make him feel any less like a piece of shit for doing it. 

Outside he found Pepper. She looked like she was nearly shaking with barely contained excitement. “Oh my god. What was it like bonding? I know you hear all these things, but it never quite matches.” She paused and slapped him lightly on the arm. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you knew his name. You knew didn’t you. That was why you were acting so weird today. JARVIS told you.”

“I didn’t know for sure. But yes, I thought he might be. After all, how many Clark Barnes am I likely to meet” he replied with a wry grin.

“Well I’m happy for you. We didn’t talk much but he seemed nice when we were speaking earlier. He also treated JARVIS like a person which I’m sure you’ll appreciate.” And Clark just kept sounding better and better. Which made sense considering they were soul mates. 

“Well I probably won’t appreciate it considering we didn’t bond” He replied. At that Pepper looked outraged.

“I’m sorry Tony. I didn’t think that he would refuse to bond. I’m sure he’ll come around, he’s probably just shocked. But in the meantime, I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.” She started to turn around. Tony dearly wanted to let her leave but that would be unfair to Clark who didn’t deserve face Peppers wrath. Honestly, she was terrifying.

“Pepper wait” He called out. “He’s not the one who didn’t want to bond.” Pepper turned back looking less angry and now just stunned. Actually, this was probably the most aghast he had ever seen her, and he did crazy shit on a regular basis. She even had her mouth hanging slightly open.

“You didn’t want to bond” she said, her tone disbelieving. “Why?”

“Well you know me. He’s just not what I was looking for.”

“What he’s not handsome enough for you?” she demanded. Yep she was definitely working her way up to being angry. Now he just had to sell it.

“He was definitely pretty enough” he replied with a leer that left him feeling disgusted with himself. “but I mean come on Pep he’s a notary. Does that really seem like the one for me?”

Her eyes had gone flinty and she said, “well I never would have pegged you as one to judge a person by their cover, but I guess looks can be deceiving.” She then turned and left.

Tony walked over to the elevator. “Take me to my floor J.”

“Of course, sir.”

“Thanks J”

“It is not too late to tell the truth, sir.”

“Not you too J. Aren’t you supposed to be on my side.”

“But I am sir. I believe that you will manage to fix your palladium troubles. I would just like for you not to have burned all of your bridges when you do.”

“Objection noted and overruled.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I went back and fixed some inconsistencies in earlier chapters. Thanks for reading!

Clint watched as his soulmate walked out, thinking that this entire thing had been a major dumpster fire of an op so far. Even though his feelings on his soulmate had always been mixed, the fact that he had been dismissed so easily rankled. Just his luck to meet his soulmate while he was undercover. All things considered it was probably for the best that Stark was disinterested. Bonding would have made keeping his cover significantly harder. Not to mention there was the fact that he did not want to bond. At least without getting to know him better. At least he hadn't had to fake his shock. That at least was completely real. His musing was interrupted by Ms. Potts reentering the room and heading towards him. She looked almost more outraged by Stark's actions then he was. 

“I’m sorry about that. I had no idea he would react like that” she said. 

“It’s alright. It’s hardly your fault that he has no interest in bonding. I can of course find someone else to …”

“No.” She exclaimed. “I have a brilliant idea. The two of you are meant for each other. We’ll just have to make him see that. All he needs is time to get to know the real you. Inwardly he winced at that. 

“How do we do that?” he asked. He was really hoping that whatever it was she was planning wouldn't work. He desperately wanted for this mission to be over and to never have to see his soulmate again.

“It’s easy enough to arrange. I’ll just make you his new PA seeing as he needs a new one now.” 

“Can’t he just fire me though '' he asked somewhat desperately.

“That's the brilliant part because you are technically an employee of Stark Industries of which I will be the CEO; he has no authority to fire someone whom I have personally hired.” She grinned obviously pleased with her plan, blissfully unaware that she had just backed him into a corner. If he hated normal honeypot missions then this was hell. Having to deceive his own soulmate. There was no good way out of it though. She had handed him the kind of access to Stark that SHIELD had always dreamed of. Though Coulson may be understanding, pulling out of a mission this critical just because he felt uncomfortable would likely be too much. They’d probably reassign him to New Mexico or something.Anyway he couldn’t say no without invoking both Coulson’s and Fury’s wrath. 

Decided Clint asked shyly “You really think that would work?” 

“Of course. I know Tony and you are exactly his type” she replied. He laughed inwardly at that. Clark Barnes was about as far from Clint Barton as you could get.

“Okay then. Sounds like a plan.”

“Perfect. You start tomorrow” she replied grinning.


	5. Chapter 5

“You’re no longer indisposed, I see” Clint said to Nat. Just a bit sour about the whole thing. Which considering she was currently lounging on his couch petting Lucky seemed fair. Lucky, that traitor, hadn't even bothered to greet him. 

“I fixed it” she replied, getting up. “Now what's got you looking like you’ve eaten a lemon.” For a second he considered not telling her but she’d find out eventually and then there would be hell to pay. Besides, if there was anyone who could understand his mixed feeling about soul mates it was her. He knew that the red room had surgically removed her mark. She’d never actually known what it had said. Like he was caught between the desire for his perfect other half and the knowledge that it wasn't always a good thing she was caught between anger at what was denied her and the belief that soulmates were a weakness. 

“I met my soulmate.” She didn't say or do anything for a long moment. Honestly she looked almost as shocked as he must have earlier. Which on her meant that she looked completely neutral. He took the moment to plop down on the couch and start petting Lucky who had immediately nudged at him with his nose. Nat sat on the other side of Lucky and wordlessly began petting him as well. Not for the first time he wished that Nat had been his soulmate. Platonic soulmates were rare but they did exist. Not that it mattered in the end. He didn't imagine he could love her any more then he already did. 

Nat did eventually break the silence. “So what happened?” she asked. “I know you, and for all your reservations about soulmates I’m pretty sure you would at least give them a chance.”

Clint buried his head against Lucky and muttered “you don't know that.” The look she leveled him said she knew that his comment was complete bullshit. “Besides” he said “you’ll never guess who it is.”

“You’re right Clint I won't because there are 8 million people in NYC. Now stop trying to distract me.” He rolled his eyes at her. This was quickly followed by a squeal of pain when she pinched him in retaliation. 

“It doesn't matter anyway because they weren’t interested” he said. 

“They weren’t interested.” She said it slowly as if trying to put the pieces together. “Were they already in a relationship?”

Clint snorted. Honestly it was hard to imagine Tony ‘Playboy’ Stark in a serious relationship. “No. They aren’t.”

“Well then they're obviously an idiot.” 

“Yeah Tash because the only reason someone wouldn’t want to be with me was if they were stupid.”

At that she looked annoyed. Then sighed as if put upon. Which hey she was the one who had asked. “This is your compliment for the next year just so you know.” She said looking at him. It took Clint a second to realize that she was waiting for a response.   
“Really you're going to make me agree to that.”  
“Yes I am. Maybe if you were less ridiculous I’d compliment you more but as it is you are basically a human dumpster fire and I try not to encourage it too much. He’d take her seriously but even though her face was absolutely serious her eyes were smiling. Not that she was wrong. He was a complete and utter mess.   
“Fine I agree to your stipulation” he acceded.  
“Clint. Though I am not at all attracted to ..”  
“That doesn't count. You're not attracted to anyone. I'll have you know I am incredibly attractive.” he interrupted indignantly. Nat gave him a glare that promised pain if he interrupted again.   
“Thank you for making my point. Yes you are attractive. You also happen to be incredibly good.   
“Umm I know I'm not supposed to interrupt but I do feel like pointing out that I am literally an assassin.”  
She arched an unimpressed eyebrow at him and said “What I am trying to say is that you are a catch and if your soulmate didn't see that then they are a complete imbecile.” Clint laughed at that. Stark was many things but an idiot he was not. “Just so you know I am never repeating this and will deny I ever said it.” Nat said.  
“I wouldn't expect anything less.”  
“I hate you”  
“No you don’t” He replied grinning. “You looove me.” He then ducked as she threw one of the couch pillows at him.


	6. Chapter 6

“Check palladium levels J.” Tony asked JARVIS.

“Blood toxicity is at 24 percent. Another Core has been depleted.” Tony removed the reactor from his chest and ejected the burning core. 

“Damn. they're running out fast” he muttered as he switched in a new core. 

“Ms. Potts is approaching. I recommend that you inform her of …”

“Shush.” Tony interrupted JARVIS. He watched as Pepper let herself into the lab and strode over to where he was definitely not hiding behind several monitors. He knew that she had to be disappointed in his reaction to Clark. He would be horrified at it himself if he didn’t think it was the kinder option. As it was, he did not want to be subjected to a lecture. 

“You were supposed to be at a board meeting at 9.” She informed him. Surprisingly, she seemed like she was pretending yesterday had not happened which worked for him. 

“Well no one informed me of this.”

“I told you yesterday. And I'm sure that Jarvis reminded you this morning.” was her reply.

“I did indeed.” JARVIS answered somewhat smugly. 

“I don’t see why it is necessary for me to attend board meetings anymore.” He said.

At this Pepper looked at him reproachfully “You may no longer be the CEO of SI, but you are still the head of its R&D division. You still have responsibilities Tony.” He opened his mouth to protest but she continued on “But as you seem to need additional prodding, I have hired you a replacement for myself.”

“I really don’t think that’s necessary” He argued. He already knew he was going to lose the argument, but he felt he at least had to put up a token argument. 

“It really is. You clearly need a minder and I am far too busy to continue being yours.” 

“Fine” He acquiesced. I’ll look over some applications today.”

“That’s unnecessary. He’s actually here now.”

At that Tony looked over and saw his soulmate walk up to the lab's entrance. As he walked in pepper looked at them both and said “I’ll let the two of you get settled in.” She then turned to address Tony. “I have already filled Clark in on your schedule. He will make sure you won’t be missing any more meetings.” She then started to leave. When she was at the door she stopped and said, “by the way Tony I hired him so you can’t actually fire him.” Then she strode out leaving the two of them to flounder in her wake. Tony thought numbly that he should have realized that Pepper would never have taken what he had done yesterday lying down. The bright side of this was at least Clark looked like he was feeling just as awkward as he was.

The silence stretched between them for several moments before Clark suddenly said “I didn’t have anything to do with this you know.” He then looked away in obvious embarrassment. 

“Great then why don’t you quit.” Tony replied. Hating himself for the disgust he put into his voice. 

At that, Clark met his eyes and said, “Because Miss Potts asked me to do this.” Clark paused and something shifted. Instead of awkward he looked defiant like he thought that Tony was going to blame him for this shit show. Which well he was pretending to be that much of a dick. After a moment he continued. “I get that you're not interested in a soulmate or at least me as a soulmate and that's fine. I definitely don't want a soulmate who doesn't want me, but I didn't ask for this either.” Clark tensed up as he finished. To Tony it looked like he was steeling himself for a blow. 

At that Tony wanted nothing more than to assure him that he was wanted. That Tony was so incredibly lucky to have him as a soulmate. But that would do neither of them any good. No matter how much it felt like he was stabbing himself in the gut he had to pretend not to care. 

“Fine then. Just keep things professional.” At that Clark nodded. “You can leave. Just come get me when I need to be somewhere.” 

Clark walked out without so much as a backwards glance. 

Tony sighed. “Well J let’s see if we can find an alternative to Palladium.” In the back of his mind he was considering how much potential groveling he would have to do on the slim chance he did find a replacement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some dialogue borrowed from Iron Man 2.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait on this one. The good news is I now have a detailed outline done and I'm hoping to post a chapter a week moving forward. See end note for warning.

The morning of his trip to Monaco, Tony is in his lab waiting for Clark to show up for his daily briefing. He’s late, which is weird because Clark has not been late at any point this week. The week since Clark had become his PA has seemed like an eternity. Him and Clark had been frigidly polite all week. It was clear that Clark did not want to be here. Tony had made several attempts to try to convince Pepper to transfer Clark back to legal for both of their sanities. Those attempts had gone poorly and had ended with him being scolded for not giving Clark a chance. Sometimes he wanted to pull his hair out and scream that he was trying to do what was best for Clark even if it felt like he was stabbing himself in the chest. He didn't say any of that of course because he was also attempting not to worry Pepper.

Jarvis was not helping the situation either. He had taken to playing love music in the lab. He has also made several cases to Tony about coming clean not just to Pepper and Rhodey but Clark as well.

Tony considers that J may like Clark more than him. They had apparently become fast friends. Tony had been confused when he’d walked in on Clark laughing at a wall earlier this week until Jarvis had replied. He had never seen J warm up to someone as fast as he had to Clark. Tony hypothesized that this was because Clark treated J as more of a real person then just about anyone. Tony tried to smother the feelings that came with that revelation. Tony was trying his best not to let himself fall in love. So far, he had not really been successful. The little flashes of personality he had been getting from behind the polite mask Clark was wearing was not helping the situation. He had a feeling that even the bots would like Clark given half a chance. That wasn't going to happen though. It was bad enough that he was always here. He did not need to be hanging around the lab. Tony didn't think his heart could take it. He laughs inwardly at his own joke. God Tony really needed this trip to Monaco. It would be good to get away and relax a bit.

“Sir Clark is on his way down for your morning briefing.” Jarvis informed Tony. J sounded a bit off though. 

“What’s up J? Is something wrong with Clark?” Tony inquired worriedly. Tony felt a pang at the thought that something had happened to him.

“You will see for yourself in a moment sir.” J replied.

Clark walked in a moment later. Tony couldn't stop himself from giving a sharp intake of breath at the sight. There was a giant bruise blooming over Clark’s cheekbone. He really did not need to be thinking about Clark’s cheekbones. He was also limping slightly, Tony noted. 

“What the fuck happened to you?” Tony asked instead of any of the other politer things he could have said. He was tired of the false politeness. 

“I was mugged” He replied staidly.

“Mugged?” Tony said incredulously. That just seemed unlikely. Also, this wasn't the first time he had noticed a bruise on Clark. Tony tried to quell the ugly protectiveness that rose in him at the thought of someone hurting Clark. It was probably nothing anyway.

“Yeah you know that thing that happens when people rob you and beat you up.” Clark said abandoning the polite pretense. God it was not fair that his soulmate was a sarcastic asshole. 

“I know what mugged is. It just looks pretty ugly.” Tony replied acidly.

“Sorry. Didn't mean to offend your delicate sensibilities. I would have covered it up, but I woke up a bit late this morning.” Clark said with a smirk.

Tony sputtered at the insinuation. He also didn't like the thought that Clark knew how to cover up bruises. It made the protectiveness surge again. Tony also was not going to admit that he had noticed that Clark was late. Instead he said “so are you going to tell me what I'm doing today or are you just going to stand there.” 

Clark just looked at him exasperated but the slight quirk of his lips gave away his amusement. Tony was completely screwed. 

…...

As Tony and Pepper enter the Hotel de Paris Clark approaches them saying “Ms. Potts, how was your flight?”

“It was excellent” Pepper replies as Tony says at the same time “You’re my PA. shouldn't you be asking me how my flight was?” 

Clark just smiles at him politely. Tony can’t help but notice that he had done an amazing job at covering up his bruise. That was the kind of skill that only comes with practice. Tony takes a couple deep breaths to calm down. He will deal with it later. Tony realizes that Clark had said something to him, so he replies with a “mhmm.” reaching for a drink that a server is offering. Clark deftly plucks the drink from his hand and walks away. Tony watches him go.

“For God's sake, I see the way you look at him. You're like a moonstruck middle schooler. I don't get you.” Pepper says.

“What I never denied he was good looking.” Tony replies with a dirty grin.

“Sometimes you can be such a pig Tony.”

Tony and Pepper made a quick round through the room before landing at the bar. Pepper was looking like she wanted to have another argument about Clark. If anyone else had interrupted them he would have called it a godsend but of course it had to be Justin Hammer, his least favorite person on earth, which he says out loud because he honestly doesn't care who knows. Tony attempts to get away from him by moving. Pepper has abandoned him of course. Not that he blames her, he’d have done the same. Clark finally interrupts Hammer’s inane yammering to inform him that the corner table is ready. Tony follows Clark over to the table where he quickly excuses himself to go to the bathroom to check his blood toxicity. 

Tony stares at the device. It is now at 53%. He hears the door open and he quickly moves to hide the device in his pocket. It is Clark. He just looks at where Tony is standing by the mirror and raises an eyebrow saying “I knew you were narcissistic Stark, but I didn't know you were quite this vain.”

“Looking this good takes effort.” Tony replies.

Clark's lips quirk up at his comeback and he says “Sure we’ll go with that.”

“You should go tell Pepper I’m about to do something stupid.” Tony says.

“That's not exactly an odd occurrence but sure I can do that.” Clark answers, leaving.

…..

As Tony sits in the revving race car, he thinks that god this was a great idea. Nothing quite takes you out of your mind like going 150 miles per hour. That thought persisted right up until the moment his race car was cut in half and he went flying. Fuck that hurts he thinks when he lands. As he lays in the upside-down race car, he sees the man that attacked approaching him. He struggles his way out, hiding as the man approaches the damaged car. When he gets close enough Tony bashes him on the head with part of the door. This does absolutely nothing besides piss the guy off. Not that he seemed to need any help with that.

Tony turns to run away but ends up knocked down to the ground by one of the guys' whips. He lays there for a moment thinking. He sees the gasoline leaking from the car and waits till the man is about to hit the car and jumps away right as the car explodes. Fuck his arm is on fire. He desperately tries to pat it away. The man is still coming towards him. Grinning menacingly. Then Tony sees Happy driving at him and jumps onto the metal gate. The car slams evil dude onto it under where he hangs. He hops down. Relived but also like what the fuck was happy thinking coming right at him like that. Pepper is yelling at him hysterically. He is about to get into the car when the door is sliced in two. 

As the car slams back into evil dude he slices off another part of the car and all Tony can hear are Pepper's frightened screams. He tries to get the suit. It's not possible though. Then three arrows fly at the man in quick succession. Evil dude manages to destroy the first two but the third slams into his shoulder. He gives an angry yell, but it distracts him long enough for Tony to grab the suit from Pepper. From there it’s a fairly one-sided battle. It takes maybe a minute to disarm him. Tony then watches as he is dragged away by the authorities. Tony crushes the knock off reactor, then grabs one of the arrows. He has a mystery to solve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are hints of abuse. It's nothing. Just Clint being Clint, but Tony doesn't know this.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's late. I blame Hamilton.

Yesterday before the trip to Monaco, Clint had finally managed to break into Stark’s lab without alerting Jarvis. A feat he was actually quite proud of. Of course, when he had mentioned this to Nat, she had just said that she could have done it a week ago. Which to be fair she probably could have, but not everyone can be as good as Nat. 

Breaking into the lab meant he had figured out why Stark was acting so weird. For someone so smart he could really be an idiot. Clint was almost positive that Tony was pulling some martyr bullshit, trying to spare the people he cared about the pain of him dying by pushing them away. He was too much of an imbecile to see that he was hurting them worse this way. Pepper was driving herself crazy with worry. Clint was actively trying not to think about what this revelation meant for him. 

Trying not to think about it effectively ensured that he was constantly thinking about it. He didn't want to care about Stark, but he did. Tony had grown on him like some kind of mold. He may be a drunk and a dick, but he meant well. 

Truthfully, Clint wanted to hate him. Tony was an alcoholic. Clint hated the irony of his soulmate being an alcoholic like his father. There was a joke in there about being doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past, but Clint had never seen Tony so much as raise his voice at any of his employees. He wasn't violent. He wasn't mean. He wasn't angry. 

The other solid points in his favor were Pepper and Jarvis. Pepper clearly cared deeply for him. Clint couldn't imagine her caring about someone like his father. As for Jarvis, Tony had created him. Clint didn't think that someone who wasn't intrinsically good could have created someone like Jarvis. Not that any of this mattered considering he had literally met Stark because he was here to spy on him. 

The fact that he finally had something to report had been his saving grace after the disaster that had been Monaco. Fury was furious over his interference. Clint's orders had been to observe only. Clint wasn't particularly worried over Fury’s ire. He was always angry over one thing or another. Coulson’s quiet disappointment on the other hand always made Clint feel sick, not that he regretted interfering. He had never been great at following orders if he was being completely honest. Nat could testify to that. Besides it’s not like anyone would be able to trace it back to SHIELD anyway. 

Fury had threatened to pull him which was an empty threat considering that not even Nat could position herself quickly enough to be useful. A week ago, Clint might have used that as an excuse to get out of the mission, but now he was personally invested. 

……..

Clint walks into SI, waving a greeting to Jarvis at the nearest camera. By the time he’s made his way to the elevators there is one waiting for him. Clint walks in and says “thanks for holding the elevator Jarvis”

“It was my pleasure Mr. Barnes.”

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Clark?”

“More than you have currently Mr. Barnes.”

Clint makes a face at the camera in the elevator and says “Stark made a mistake when he programmed you with sass.” 

“I’m afraid you’ll have to bring up any concerns with Mr. Stark.”

“Ha-ha very funny.” Clint pauses grimacing. “How bad is it up there?”

“I believe Ms. Potts could use your assistance.” Jarvis replies. Bad then Clint thinks. 

Clint exits the elevator to find Pepper on the phone. Bad was an outrageous understatement based on Peppers current tone. Clint winces slightly when he hears her ripping into the person she's on the phone with. 

He waits until she's hung up before asking “So, how is he?”

“He’s an asshole.” she says clearly exasperated. Clint laughs.

“Yes, but besides the obvious?” 

“I have no idea.” She sighs before continuing “He won’t talk to me. I don't know what to do with him. I feel like I hardly know him right now.”

“So not great than. What about you?”

“I’m fine.”

Clint raises an eyebrow at her and says “It’s ok to not be ok.”

“I’m the CEO of SI. I have to be ok. If I'm anything but then I’m weak.” she says pointing to the T.V.

“God, I hate those sexist douchebags. Well what can I do to help then?” he replies. 

Pepper grins at him. “You can help me with these phone calls.” she said.

“Sounds good.”

Clint helps Pepper field and triage the deluge of calls. He’s there when Rhodes walks in and when he walks out not long after. He decides that now is probably a good moment to make Stark eat something. Clint also brings him coffee because he is of the opinion that coffee makes everything better. He is walking down the stairs when he stumbles. He has a moment to think aw, coffee. No, before he’s at the bottom of the stairs with a resounding thud. Clint takes a moment to reorient himself. He is now covered in coffee and well there are worse places to be, but damn it burns. 

He looks up and sees Stark staring at him from the other side of the glass. Stark flushes and looks away before getting up. He walks over to where Clint is still laying at the foot of the stairs. Stark helps Clint up and says awkwardly “You can wash yourself up in the bathroom in the lab. I also have extra clothes in there.”

Clint, still dripping coffee replies “Thanks. I’ll go do that now.”

In the bathroom, Clint stares at the mirror. The coffee had washed away most of the makeup he had applied earlier to cover the bruises. The damn tracksuit Draculas’ had been getting increasingly brave in their attacks on the apartment building. He has several bruises of varying shades, some layered on top of one another. He had known that he needed to be a bit better about hiding them after Stark had asked about them the other day. He should have brought some makeup with him. Some super spy he was. 

When Clint walks out, he is wearing SI sweatshirt and sweatpants. Not exactly the most fashionable look but at least they're comfortable he thinks. Stark is standing just a bit away, clearly waiting. Stark opens his mouth as if to say something before closing it again. For a second Clint thinks he sees something like anger flit across Tony's face before being replaced by concerned amusement as he asks “So are you going to go with a mugging again?”

“Yeah you know these are some very persistent muggers.” Clint says. Stark clearly knows he's lying. Oh well it's unlikely he cares enough to make a big deal of it. 

“Of course.” Tony says looking like he wants to say something else.

Before he has the chance Clint asks “What do you want to eat? I'll order you something.” Jarvis had asked Clint to make sure he ate something. Clint was fairly confident he hadn't eaten anything since Monaco. 

Tony looks at Clint for a moment like he’s trying to solve a particularly complicated problem before asking “Is there something you want? We can order enough for two.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea.” Clint says hesitantly.

“Of course it is. All of my ideas are good ones.” Tony replies with a maddeningly endearing smirk. Clint snorts before he can stop himself. Tony smiles and says “So he does have a sense of humor. I was beginning to think you were a robot designed to be mean and sarcastic.”

“I didn't know that’s what you were into.” Clint says teasingly. 

Tony goes wide eyed at that before recovering and saying “You’re trying to distract me. I'll have it be known that I am indistractable. So, what food should we be ordering?”

“That's not a word Stark.” Tony just raises an eyebrow at him in response. “Pizza then Stark. Pineapple pizza.” Clint says. It’s a dare. Tony’s a food snob. He’ll bow out.

Tony makes a face. “You’re bluffing.”

“I never bluff about pizza Stark.” 

“Fine we’ll order pineapple pizza, you heathen.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See note at end for warnings.

Tony stares at the geometric puzzle sprawling in dark lines from the arc reactor. The palladium is now at a concentration of 89 percent. He doesn't have much longer. Tony is startled from his ruminations by Clark coming in and asking, “Do you know which watch you’d like to wear tonight, Mr. Stark.”

Tony hastily closes his shirt and says “Mr. Stark, I’m hurt. I thought after our tete-a-tete last night we were beyond such formalities, at least in private.” Truthfully, all Tony had managed to get out of Clark last night was that he had a dog who he adored and a best friend who thought he was completely hopeless. Tony definitely felt for the second one thinking of both Rhodey and Pepper. 

“What happens when eating pizza, stays with the pizza Stark.” Clark answers with a teasing lilt to his voice. He is standing at the mini bar making what looks like a Martini.

“I should cancel the party, huh?” Tony says suddenly. He doesn't want to. 

“Probably.” Clark responds noncommittally. 

“Yeah, cause its um...”

“Ill-timed” Clark is moving towards him. How had he never noticed how blue Clark's eyes were. 

“Right. Sends the wrong message.” Tony agrees, still helplessly ensnared in the depths of Clark's eyes.

“Inappropriate.” Clark says. He lets Tony take the glass from him instead of handing it to him. It looks like a dirty Martini. They are standing so close to one another that for an insane moment Tony wants to close the distance and kiss him. Tony takes a sip instead, and promptly spits it out.

“What the fuck is this?”

“Not dirty enough for you?” Clark says. He looks like he’s barely holding himself back from laughing.

“Should I be worried that you’ve poisoned me?” Tony asks jokingly.

“Calm down Stark, it's just water, lime, and olive juice. If I were going to poison you, you’d never know.”

“I should fire you for that.” Tony still cannot take his eyes off Clark's.

Clark just laughs “Good luck with that.”

“I'll take a look at the watches now” Tony says in lieu of a response. He breaks his gaze from Clark's. 

Tony chooses the Jaeger. He sits down. Clark props himself on the arm of the chair and Tony has to stop himself from jerking in shock when Clark lightly touches the bruise just under his eye. Clark stops. He looks at Tony. Then after a moment when he sees Tony is ready, he continues. His touch is so light. Tony doesn't remember the last time someone touched him so gently. Clark applying makeup to cover the bruise from the fight in Monaco makes Tony think guiltily of the fact that he had set Jarvis to spying on Clark yesterday after he had left. He didn't regret it though, not really. He had every intention of finding out who had hurt his soulmate and making them pay. 

Clark finishes and is getting ready to get up when Tony says “Can I ask you a question, Hypothetically. Bit odd.”

“Shoot.” Clark says with a small smile. 

“If this was your last birthday party you were ever gonna have, how would you celebrate it?”

Clark's face settles into a more serious expression almost like he does know that this is likely Tony’s last. It feels like he is staring straight into Tony's soul, which should feel uncomfortable but instead feels oddly right. “I’d do whatever I wanted to do with whoever I wanted to do it with.”

……

Clint had absolutely not meant this when he had told Tony to do whatever he wanted. Clint had been trying to encourage him to tell Pepper the truth. He is willing to admit he may have engaged in a modicum of flirting as well, but Tony dancing in his iron man suit in front of a veritable mob of party goers was definitely not what he had meant. Pepper looked like she was about to lose her shit, not that he blamed her. She had spent the past 24 hours working nonstop to reverse the damage that Monaco had caused and here was Tony undoing all her work with one alcohol induced rager.  
Pepper is on her way out when Rhodes walks in. Pepper sees Rhodes as well and she ushers them towards him. When they get within hearing distance Pepper says to Rhodes “I’m going to go get some air.”

Rhodes asks her “What’s wrong?”

Pepper leads him to where Tony is stumbling around. “I don’t know what to do.” She says helplessly.

“You gotta be kidding me.” “That’s it I’m making …”

“No, no, no. Don’t call anyone.” Pepper interrupts him.

“Pepper. This is ridiculous.” Rhodes argues.

“I know. I’m handling it. I’ll handle it.”

“Handle it. Or I’m gonna have to.” he says. 

“I’ll do it.” Clint volunteers. This is after all his fault. 

Rhodes stares at him like he's seeing him for the first time. Which to be fair Clint’s pretty sure they’ve never been introduced. Rhodes confirms this by asking “Who are you?”

Clint is silent. He doesn't particularly want to share the fact that Tony is his soulmate, and this is not really the time or place anyway. Pepper seems to come to a similar conclusion considering she says “This is Clark, Tony's new PA.”

Rhodes studies him for a moment. Clark knows he's being seized up which is fine. He’d do the same if he hadn't read an entire file on Rhodes. After a moment he seems to have reached a decision. He says, “Well you’re welcome to try, seeing as neither Pepper or I have been able to get through to him lately.” 

Clint nods his understanding and heads toward Tony, who is currently going to the bathroom in his suit. Well he thinks at least it's not like he can make this any worse. Clint makes it to Tony who is doubled over in laughter. Apparently, he finds soiling himself the pinnacle of humor. 

Clint is willing to admit that he himself is immature, but this seems like a low even to him. He snatches the mic from Tony and says to the room “Does this guy know how to throw a party or what?”

The crowd goes crazy. Tony stands up and drunkenly salutes the screaming crowd before leaning into the mic close enough to Clint that he can the whiskey on Tony’s breath. He says, “I love you.” 

Clint feels his blood run cold, He plasters a smile on his face and says “Unbelievable!” Clint thinks about the number of times he witnessed his father slurring that to his mother. He wants to slip away. This is why he avoids drunk people. It always brings him back in time to when he was powerless. It doesn’t help that Clint is currently weaponless. Well he has a couple of knives on him but none that would do him any good against the suit.

“Thank you so much Tony, we all thank you so much for such a wonderful night, but we’re going to say goodnight now” He finishes wanting to puke. 

Tony protests. Clint tells him. “You’re out of control, trust us on this.” he says, gesturing to where Pepper and Rhodes are standing watching. 

Tony says, “You’re out of control gorgeous.”

“It's time to go to bed Tony. You’ll regret this in the morning.”

“Nuh uh. Give me a smooch.” He leans in to kiss Clint. Clint smothers his knee jerk reaction to literally knee him in the balls considering Clint would probably just break his knee on the suit. He instead leans back, and fixes Tony with his scariest glare. He seems to get the picture because he takes the mic and steps back. Clint lets out a breath he hadn't known he had been holding. 

Tony steps down off the stage and says “Clark Barnes.” There's a scattered applause from the crowd before he continues “He’s right. The party’s over, but the after-party starts in 15 minutes!” The crowd cheers. “And if anybody” Stark turns to look at him. “Clark, doesn’t like it, there’s the door.” he says, gesturing. Stark's repulsor goes off shattering the glass doors. The crowd looks scared for a second before going wild once more. 

Clint wants to either laugh or cry, he’s not really sure which. He thinks that he was right before. Tony is not a mean or angry drunk, but he is a reckless one. That could have killed someone and there Stark is cheering, like it's all a game. Like these people's lives mean nothing to him. He destroys a champagne bottle tossed into the air with another blast of his repulsor. 

Pepper leaves first. The look on her face is such profound disappointment. Rhodes storms off not much longer. Clint watches for a while, he is seriously thinking of intervening, because Stark may actually kill somebody if he continues this when Rhodes appears in another suit. Clint slips out with the other party goers to find Pepper.

While Rhodes and Stark fight Clint manages to find Pepper. This of course is quickly followed by Stark and Rhodes falling through the ceiling next to them. Clint grabs Pepper and pulls her out of the way. He sees Happy nearby and makes sure that they leave before making his way back to where the crowd is standing watching Stark and Rhodes fight. Clint watches with disgust as Stark beats Rhodes into the floor. Stark then turns to the crowd and roars at them. 

The crowd finally scatters, no longer seeing this as a game. With the crowd dispersed and no one in any danger of becoming collateral damage, Clint decides he may as well use this opportunity to break into the lab again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alcohol induced violence. Nothing graphic.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's late again.

Tony woke up with a pounding in his head, the taste of whiskey heavy in his mouth. It took him a moment to recall what had happened. He regretted every decision that had brought him to this moment and wished he didn't remember what had happened last night. He could vividly recall the disappointment and disgust in Clark’s eyes. He got up, letting out a pained groan as his headache bloomed at the movement. Dum-E whistled and rolled up to him. Bumping into him in his eagerness to show Tony the smoothie he had made for him. Tony took it and gave it an exploratory sip. It tasted like a normal smoothie. There was always about a 50-50 chance with them. 

“How bad is the damage J?” He asked.

“The foundation is fine but there is extensive damage to much of the building sir. The only part to remain entirely unscathed is the lab.”

“Makes sense. I built the lab to withstand me.”

“Sir. I have some information to report on the tasks you gave me.” J said. He sounded almost hesitant. A tone he rarely used.

“Go on J.” 

“The arrow, from my analysis, seems to match a specialist for SHIELD, Codename Hawkeye.” Tony pulled up the information J had compiled on Hawkeye. He scanned it quickly. Apparently, he had been an assassin for hire for several years before SHIELD had recruited him. Tony took a quick glance at his kill list. J had added a note about the type of jobs he took. It appeared he had only taken hits on those that he thought were guilty. Interesting an assassin with a conscience apparently. 

“Of course, it's SHIELD.” Tony said exasperated. “Do we know who this Hawkeye is?”

“I was unable to access that information. There are rumors though that he originated in a circus. It will take more time to hack into the classified SHIELD files.” A circus Tony thought laughing, that might explain why he used a weapon as antiquated as a bow. 

“Ok. Do it. I want to know more about this Hawkeye.” Tony's stomach rumbled. Maybe he should go grab some donuts he thought. 

“There is another matter sir.”

“What is it J.”

“You had me look into Clark.” Tony started he had almost forgotten that in the mess of everything else. 

“Did you find out what is up with him?” Tony asked. Punching someone would probably make him feel better.

“I did indeed. It seems that the reason for his various injuries, aside from those derived from accidents, is the mafia.”

“The mafia. How is he involved with the mafia?” Tony exclaimed in shock. His tone pitched significantly higher than normal.

“It seems he won the apartment building he lives in from them. They have been trying to get him to return it.” Tony just gaped. What the hell. J then continued. “As I was doing some digging, I was also able to ascertain that Clark is not who he claims to be.” 

It took Tony a second to digest this. “He’s been spying on me.” Clark couldn't have been hired to kill him. He'd had countless opportunities already.

“It appears so sir.” J’s tone was grave.

“Do we know who for?”

“It seems he works for SHIELD.” Tony in a fit of anger threw the glass containing his half-drunk smoothie. It shattered against the wall.

…..

An hour later Tony is lounging in a giant donut. He is definitely not moping. What does it matter if his soulmate is spying on him for a secret government organization? What does it matter that he thought that Clark had been starting to warm to him before last night? Tony was just a job to him. He tries not to think about the fact that most of the people who have cared for him have been paid to. 

He is so lost in his thoughts that he almost doesn't notice Fury approaching him, wearing his normal black trench coat. Clearly, he is trying to impersonate a space pirate. 

Fury yells up at him “Sir. I’m going to have to ask you to exit the donut.” Fury then turns and walks into the donut shop, doubtless expecting Tony to follow him. Tony considers leaving but decides that Fury will just find him again and probably make the meeting significantly more unpleasant. 

Tony joins him in the shop. They sit opposite one another in a booth, engaging in a silent standoff for several moments before Tony breaks. He has always hated silence. 

“I thought we already had this little chat. I don’t want to join your super-secret boy band.”

“No, no, no. See, I remember you do everything yourself. How’s that working out for you?” Fury says ominously. 

If Tony didn't know that Clark worked for SHIELD, then he might have just thought that Fury was merely being infuriating. Considering Clark is his spy though it's probably safe to assume that Fury knows about the Palladium poisoning. So might as well do the unexpected and admit it. 

“I’m doing great. I’m slowly poisoning myself to death, but that's just a normal Tuesday now. “Fury doesn't even blink. Damn he had really been hoping for a reaction. “What, I'm so much of a mess you have to send two people to look after me?” Tony continues.

Fury just raises his eyebrow.

“I did my research. Hawkeye is the one who intervened in Monaco but there's also Clark. If that is even his name. Tell me did you know he was my soulmate before you sent him in or was that just a pleasant surprise for you.” 

Fury doesn’t really react to that statement. He does take just a moment too long to respond saying “It was a surprise” and taking a sip of his coffee. Tony realizes that Fury hadn’t known. Clark hadn't told him. He feels something like hope. Hope that maybe Clark isn't just pretending. That fact shouldn't matter to him as much as it does. Clark still spied on him. Still betrayed him. 

“That rash on your neck isn't looking so good.” 

Tony just glares at him and says, “I’ve had worse.” Out of the corner of his eye he sees a figure approaching their table. It's a woman in a skintight black suit. 

“We’ve secured the perimeter, but I don't think we should hold it for too much longer.” she says when she arrives at the table. She then slides into the booth next to Fury. 

“Tony, I want you to meet Agent Romanoff.” Fury says.

“So, let me guess you're another spy?” Tony asks. The smile she gives him in return sends chills down his spine.

“I’m a SHIELD Shadow. Once we knew you were ill, I was tasked to you by Director Fury.”

“Wait, I've had three people following me.” Tony exclaims. That just seems like too much.

“No. I was supposed to meet you the day you signed SI over to Ms. Potts. There were some complications and I was unable to meet you. Agent Barton was sent instead. I’ve just been keeping an eye on the situation.” Romanoff replies. Of course, they had been going to send her. Tony wanted to laugh, of fucking course SHIELD knew exactly what kind of men and women he would be attracted to. So well they'd managed to find his soulmate even if it had been on accident.

How’d you know I was Ill?” 

“You haven't exactly been subtle. You made Ms. Potts your CEO; you’ve been giving away all your stuff. I mean you let Rhodes fly away with your god damned suit.” Fury says his voice full of derision.

“I didn't give it to him. He took it.” Tony retorts.

“He took it. You’re Iron Man and he just took it? Kicked your ass and walked out with it. Is that really possible?” He finishes, turning to Romanoff.

“Well, according to Mr. Stark's database security guidelines, there are redundancies to prevent unauthorized usage.” Tony feels sick. The only way they could know that was if someone had broken into his lab, which just puts into stunning focus the fact that Clark had betrayed him.

He stands and says, “This has been fun, but I think I should be going.”

He turns to go, but then Romanoff is there sticking a needle and injecting him with something. “Sit down Stark.” Fury orders. Tony does. “You think that you're my only problem to deal with. Well guess what the world doesn't revolve around you. I have a real problem in the Southwest, but here I am babysitting your ass instead.”

“I didn't ask you to” Tony replies. 

“Well too fucking bad” Fury says sarcastically.

Tony glares at them before asking “What was that shit you injected me with?”

“Lithium dioxide. It'll abate the symptoms so you can get back to work.” Romanoff answers.

“It doesn't look like it's going to be an easy fix.” Fury says.

You don't need to tell me. I’ve been looking for a suitable replacement for palladium. I’ve tried every combination, permutation, and derivative of every known element.”

“Well lucky for you I'm here to tell you haven't tried them all.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully y'all liked it better then I do. Also I do take constructive criticism.


End file.
